by Jonathan Jones
Sometimes leaders – like all human beings – become so absorbed in their world of challenges, opportunities, and day-to-day duties that they can be oblivious to challenges that may be impacting their employees. It could be as simple as a sick child or as complicated as a death or divorce.
A friend of mine was recently diagnosed with cancer. He did not tell many people at all, but his body was making it clear that something was very wrong. He was arriving late because his body would not cooperate and move. His peers became concerned and went out of their way to show him steady compassion. He excitedly called me to invite me to a Rams game in the company suite. He was humbled by and grateful for this random act of kindness from his boss.
That unexpected kindness reinforced his loyalty and the feeling of support from his company, which made all the difference in his strength to go through testing and the challenging medical path ahead. It was that “I’ve got your back” moment to a key employee that the company valued and cherished.
Acts of kindness begin with taking the time to pay attention to what is going on. It might be offering a “personal day” for your traveling road warrior to be with family or mailing a special thank-you card to an employee’s home address about a job especially well done – which ripples pride to the family.
Random acts of kindness are just that. Random. Remember the old adage “People are nice to the nice.” When you actively incorporate kindness into your culture, it is contagious. It positively infects customers and suppliers and makes going to work a pleasure. Dare yourself to do one random act per day.
Jonathan Jones (Jonathan.jones@vistagechair.com or 314-608-0783) is a CEO peer group chair/coach for Vistage International.
Submitted 8 years 175 days ago